HARTFORD -- The parent of a child murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary School's rhetorical question on the purpose of assault weapons for civilians was answered by a shout from the audience, "the Second Amendment" at a Bipartisan Gun Violence Prevention and Children's Safety task force hearing Monday on reducing gun violence.

The exchange summed up the position of each side as the state examines tightening access to firearms, an expanded ban on assault weapons, high capacity ammunition and numerous other changes on background checks and permitting.

Several parents of the first-graders killed Dec. 14 in Newtown offered emotional remembrances and a plea for firearm controls, while gun manufacturers made an economic pitch for their industry and a survey of teachers found them overwhelmingly in favor of an assault weapons ban.

Opponents of changes in the law, however, dominated the afternoon session as it restarted after a short break. Some 2,200 people attended hearings at the Legislative Office Building Monday, most interested in the gun discussion. About 400 were picked at random to offer testimony.

Members of the public waited in long lines before walking through metal detectors and then registering to give testimony before the 50-member task force.

It was held to address the slaughter at Sandy Hook carried out by Adam Lanza, who killed 20 children and six staff members at the school with a Bushmaster AR-15 rifle.

"I ask if there is anybody in this room who can give me one reason ... why anybody ... needs to have one of these assault-style weapons ... or high capacity clips? Not one person can answer that question," said Neil Heslin, father of Jesse Lewis, one of the children who was killed.

"The Second Amendment shall not be infringed," came the answer from a woman in the back as state Sen. Martin Looney, D-New Haven, who was chairman of the session, asked that audience members not interrupt speakers.

Heslin said he respected their opinions and he hoped they respected his, but reiterated change was needed on gun laws.

"We are not living in the Wild West. We are not a Third World nation. We have the strongest military in the world," said Heslin, who argued against allowing civilians to have assault weapons.

"The happiest day in my life was the day he was born. ... He was my buddy, my best friend," Heslin said, struggling to control his voice, as he held a picture of himself with Jesse at 6 months.

"We were supposed to go back to make gingerbread houses. We never made it," he said of the plans he had with Jesse on Dec. 14.

Judy Aron of West Hartford was typical of those who objected to the proposed gun law changes.

"We are convinced that only law-abiding gun owners will be affected, while criminals will still have and use whatever weapons they want," Aron said.

She said when West Hartford was without electricity during the ice storm in October, they got a message from the town that two criminals were on the loose.

"I was relieved to know I had the means in the dark to defend myself," said Aron, a gun owner. She said the tax on ammunition would hurt low-income people.

"I owe it to those who perished in the ovens that my (gun) rights are not infringed," she said, referring to Nazi Germany.

Another speaker blamed "atheism" for a change in culture that has allowed violence to proliferate.

"Those who have committed these violent acts we are so upset over are the products of an atheist school system with a lack of respect for authority and for other people that the absence of God produces," he said as the audience in one of a half-dozen overflow rooms cheered.

Matthew Zurel of Bristol said he objected to the restrictions on assault weapons, limitations on high capacity magazines and the full registration of guns. He said legislation should not be based on emotion.

Bill Hemby of Newtown said the Founders warned that those "who trade their freedom for safety deserve neither nor will they enjoy either." He said self-defense is a God-given right and lawmakers should not limit the guns that "honest citizens carry."

At 6:30 p.m., Looney estimated that there were six or seven hours of testimony to go.

Police Chief Anthony Salvatore, head of the state's association of police chiefs, agreed with many of the bills proposed by Looney, including eliminating the Board of Firearms Examiners, and more specific reasons why a gun permit applicant could be turned down.

He wants applicants to sign a release form to allow police to seek medical records, if necessary, in order to make a decision.

New Haven Mayor John DeStefano Jr. spoke in favor of a gun offender registry so police can keep track of prisoners returning to the city, particularly those who are not on parole.

The mayor said there have been 53 murders in a 25-month period in the city with 200 injured. "The reality of the violence does not stop," he said. DeStefano said he welcomed the discussion on guns as long overdue.

DeStefano said he supports the right to have guns, but it has to be balanced with strict rules of access and background checks.

State Rep. Gary Winfield-Holder, D-New Haven, said the killings in the state from 2008 to 2011 totaled 367. "I would say that is a slow banal mass killing and it happens over and over again," he said.

Winfield-Holder said government can play a role in helping to change the reasons for urban violence. He said if Connecticut flagged the problem of gun trafficking it could become a national issue.

Woodbury First Selectman Gerald Stomski said his town used to be a place where you heard church bells. "We now hear the sounds of gunfire from those who practice in ... our hills," he said as they fear a loss of rights after Dec. 14.

Stomski said there has been a jump in gun permit applications since then that he had never seen before. He said gun safety is paramount and he wonders if there will be proper training for all these new gun owners.

Rabbi Shaul Praver of Temple Adath Israel of Newtown, who comforted the parents at the Sandy Hook school Dec. 14, said the state has to come to some kind of middle ground to solve the violence.

"This is serious. I don't want to come here or any other city to describe what it is like to console parents who've had their children's brains shot out," he said.

Lawrence Keane, senior vice president of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, said the gun industry contributes $1.75 billion to the state economy and is responsible for more than 7,300 full-time jobs and asked that lawmakers keep that in mind.

Looney asked the NSSF to respond to the recent New York Times article describing its efforts to get guns into the hands of more and younger children.

Junior Shooters' editor Andy Fink said in the article that if the industry is to survive, "gun enthusiasts must embrace all youth shooting activities, including' ones using semiautomatic firearms with magazines holding 30-100 rounds.'"

Keane said the NSSF has a lot recruiting efforts but all those involving children are supervised.

A representative of Mossberg and Sons said it is a leader in firearms for younger, smaller stature shooters. "Frankly, we are very proud of that," he said.

He said a young person who learns to use a firearm safely "is the best way to keep firearms out the hands of criminals." He said unlike in Connecticut, shooting is a family hobby in other parts of the country.

State Sen. Don Williams, D-Brooklyn, told the gun makers that they have a big opportunity to add jobs and make a profit by creating safer guns.

He said it is lawmakers' job to regulate access, but the industry should be the "leading edge" on technology that keeps weapons out of the hands of non-owners. He was referring to internal and external locking devices.

Keane said manufacturers are concerned with safety and firearms accidents are at record lows as are suits on product liability. He said the safety technology "is not mature enough" and they oppose a mandate on these features such as New Jersey did.

Williams said they should market on safety and he compared it to the auto industry when it fought safety regulations.

Kevin Reid, vice president of Sturm, Ruger & Co., told the lawmakers to weigh the rights of law abiding citizens.

"We need to be mindful of the economic impact. Connecticut obviously can't afford a solution that costs jobs and tax revenue while does nothing to address the problem," Reid said.

Other parents of children killed at Sandy Hook also came forward, including Mark Mattiolli, the father of James Mattioli, 6.

"The problem is not gun laws. The problem is a lack of civility," Mattiolli said. "What we are seeing is a symptom of a bigger problem."

He said the laws on the books are not enforced and that is the place to start. The father said the country "needs common decency to prevail." He spoke of the core values at Sandy Hook which included cultivating character.

Veronique Pozner, who lost her son, Noah, has been one of the most outspoken representatives of the parents since the tragedy.

She described her loss, calling Noah "our 6-year-old force of nature," and said she came to speak on his behalf.

Pozner said she and her husband want assault weapons banned and none grandfathered. "The equation is terrifyingly simple: Faster weapons equal more fatalities," she said.

"This is not about the right to bear arms. It is about the right to bear weapons with the capacity for mass destruction," she said. She wants all firearms registered and owners required to carry insurance, like car owners, shifting the burden off society.